1. First thing would be don’t take yourself too seriously and don’t get hung up on the idea of ageing for a start. Nothing makes you older than thinking you can’t do something because you’re a certain age.

2. The big thing is your relationship with the sun. The people who look oldest are the people who refuse to believe that. Enjoy it without being out in any major way.

3. Don’t use up all the big guns in the anti-ageing arena when you’re in your twenties. If you use them all in your twenties and thirties -when you come to really need a bit of vitamin C or a course of Retinol (in your forties and fifties), they won’t be as effective.

4. It may seem boring but routine cleansing and nurturing pays off in the long run. Irritated skin is aging skin. The more you prod, pull, inject ,exfoliate ,peel or go for even more invasive procedures the more traumatised your skin becomes and the more it will suffer in the long term.

5. Protect from the inside. When you get to 50,in my opinion, you should be looking at supplements and whether you need extra Vit C, Vit D3, EFAs, Magnesium, anti-oxidants, not to mention targeted supplements like Biotin which is great for nails and hair. But no point in buying cheap supplements. Research the ones with quality. Often with the menopause and change of hormones depletion of testosterone and oestrogen the hair becomes thinner and nails become brittle-and that’s where you can use supplements of kelp and antioxidants and it really makes a difference. Silica is helpful in promoting healthy hair, preventing hair loss, promoting healthy skin and nails. The Chinese use a herb called Fo –ti. You can take kelp as well, the Japanese eat a lot of seaweed and they have wonderfully thick hair.

6. If you have a skin problem and are thinking of having any procedure done, always go to a reputable dermatologist before you do anything because your GP is not a specialist in skin. The British Association of Dermatologists can help you find the right person.

7. Exercise and fresh air. Be sensible about exercise. If you’re not going to get to the gym every day, three days a week, are you going to walk the dog three days a week instead because that would be just as good? Are you going to climb up the stairs to your work? Are you going to do something really basic like have a one hour’s walk after lunch?

8. And finally, Smoking and Caffeine should be moderated. Both have a marked affect on the skin.

9. Some people react to Retinol, a synthesised form of Vitamin A which has proven in the formulation of cosmetics to minimise fine lines and wrinkles. If you are worrie about using, ease into it very carefully. It may be that you use it in a cream form, once every couple of days until you build up to using it every day. It will take you longer to see the results but it would be worth it in the long run because you won’t irritate your skin. Retinyl Palmitate, a gentler form of Retinol is another option. So again it would take you longer to loose the lines and wrinkles but you won’t irritate your skin in the process. If your skin is irritated by Retinol it might well be irritated by vitamin C or glycolic acid as well and it would certainly be irritated by perfume.

10. I have a hunch that sometimes, if you really cleansed your system, if you fasted and got rid of all the toxins in your system for a period of time: if you were honest with whether you actually were taking drugs or smoking and drinking and stopped all the things you could be doing to irritate your skin – it would make a difference. I think you have to look at the holistic picture too.

Ways to reduce your toxic lifestyle:

Don’t spray your flowers with pesticides – you then inhale them

Don’t spray you rooms with chemicals that you then inhale

Don’t use air fresheners in the car full of chemicals in a confined space

People who do nail extensions are a good example. Have you ever smelt that nail extension stuff? I mean it is like you can smell the toxic stuff that they are inhaling – you’re doing that all the time

Don’t use toxic oven sprays which you then inhale. Things like Febreze – all those awful things that you absolutely don’t need in your washing machine

Candles full of synthetic fragrance and not using natural wax

Use a natural aromatherapy oil on your body instead of a cheap designer fragrance – it will last longer and it with contain less synthetics - better for your skin